The Irish standard., 1887-07-23
oPH,DlAN TRADITIONS.
Antiquity Of tho Belief in tho Existen
of the Sea Serpent.

Antiquity OF the Reliet in tho Existencl
of the ea-Serpent.
Summer is the time of year when the
monster ophidian of the sea begins his
annual cayortings atop the waves
This evasive creature has come to be
one of the necessary features of we'll
organized summer. and it is decidedly
an off year when his archaic snakeshif
is not seen sporting with the fancy
curls OF the semi-tranquil Atlantic.
The visions of the serpent last year
were not altogether clear and decisive.
That which passed for him turned out
to be a dreamily drifting log with a
tllft of sea-weed caught in its branches.
An artistic and circumstantial liar did,
to be sure, come to the rescue at the
fag end of the season with an attempt
to lasso the fantasy of a beery brain,
but the simon-pure article vouched for
by reliable testimony was not sighted.
The chances are, therefore, very
largely in favor of his sinuous excel
lency being seen in reassuring num-
bers this propitious summer. Sincere
ly is it to be hoped this time-noted
mystery Of the deep will show enough
respect to the age of reason and dis
ooyery to let himself be discovered un-
mistakably before the close of the
present century, and we doubt if he
could select better time for clearing
up age-existing doubts than this par
ticular summer. Belief in the exist
ence Of the sea-serpent is as ancient as
marine history. Aristotle, Pliny and
Others of that antique period philo-
accepted tales of him, anil
as long ago as 230 A. D. he was carved
in stone as an evidence oi faith of his
actual being. He has been spotted at
odd times down the ages, and gets in
to positive history as early as 1855
after having survived in Scandinavian
tradition for a thousand years. CLAUS
Magnus, Archbishop OF Upsala, q, good
and pious man, not untluly given to
prevarication, gives very straightfor-
ward accounts OF several sea monsters
Of the snake order, one of which was
enough to reach up and take
q man out OF a f,lll-rigged single-mas-
ter.
Rev. Hans Egede in 1854 saw a scr.
pent that raised itself out OF the water
"until it's head reached above our
and though we may make
reasonable allowances for the exagera~
5ions of fear, there is 8 minuteness Of
description that seems to make the
sinch Of salt supertiuous Bishop Bon
sop pidan, of Norway, describes in his
book of natural history a sea-serpent
six hundred feet long, as big around
Is two hogsheads. These are substan-
;ial whoppers, maybe, but in these lat
;er days we have the testimony of Cap
ain Eleazer Crabtree that be saw in
2enobscot Bay a serpent one hundred
:eet long. In 1903 q dead monster
ifty-ive feet long, ten feet in circun-
:erence, and having six paddle.like
egs, was washed ashore on the coast OF
'ne of the Orkney Islands. Atintervals
;inces then there have been appear
,nces so we'll vouched for that scientific
men have been much perplexed how TO
'econcjle their skeptiejsm as to a bona
ide sca-serpent with the unmistak-
sb!e some things that show up in such
provoking fashion.
The truth is, that his alleged snake
hip never comes within range for
close observation, and learned men
ire now of the opinion that the snake
s really a giant squid. Squids have
been captured that measured fifty-five
eet in length. These monsters when
winning propel themselves back
ward, trailing their long arms after
hem, SO that at distance they might
'eadily be mistaken for genuine SER
,ents. Until the serpent consents TO
'ome into port for inspection the skep~
ical are warranted in doing tradition
he indignity of believing that it has
10 other basis for this monster oplid-
an than the back~scuttle of squid.---
Chicago Inter Ocean.